Braving the Critique Room once again

BoblyBill · Nov 2, 2006

Here's a picture of a subject I'm more comfortable, but I'm here to improve my skills so please tear this one apart. Any little thing that you think needs to have been done with the picture please say, so that I can take the picture better next time. Thank you in advance

newrmdmike · Nov 2, 2006

exposure of the flower seems nice, only thing I would have done is angle down a little more so there isn't that solid white in the top left.

Puscas · Nov 2, 2006

if you want to show the beauty of nature, why not pick a flower that is not so damaged?
Or is that on purpose?

pascal

fightheheathens · Nov 3, 2006

i think the flower itself is well shot, however, i also feel that the backround is a little distracting. In a shot like this the way to get the flower to pop would be to have a darker color behind it.

LaFoto · Nov 3, 2006

To me it feels like the whole photo is a tad overexposed ... also the petals could do with a tad less exposure! I might be wrong, though, it is just a first impression I am getting, but that may be influenced by the blown-out bit of sky in the upper left corner.

As to the flower not being perfect ... I actually quite like that part of the photo since nothing in nature ever is totally perfect for a prolonged period of time and soon feeding birds (on a sunflower), wind and rain can do harm to the erstwhile perfect flower.

BoblyBill · Nov 3, 2006

How is this for a non-distracting background?

Is this what you are talking about?
What exactly do you mean by blown out? Is that because the pedals don't seem to have constast? So... then if I was to speed up the shutter a little bit then I would have gotten better detail in the pedals right? Thanks for the comments!

abraxas · Nov 3, 2006

In the first shot the eye is going to go right to the white. Like newrmdmike said, angle down, or, is the picture in closer and to the center of the flower? Looks like radical stuff going on in there.

Wolff · Nov 3, 2006

Shooting from a direction that isn't head on would add more interest. Also, I think the background in the second image is more distracting than the first because it isn't out of focus enough to look like you intended it to be there. I would narrow your depth of field on the second image.

On the first image, I would add green folage to the background or shoot from an angle that gives you a solid green background. When the background is out of focus it will just give a nice, slightly textured green that will really make the bright yellow flower pop.

rwebbart · Nov 4, 2006

I agree with the others. But I think the DOF is a hair too shallow. The center of the flower is sharp, but the edges of the petals are a little soft.

On the second one, I would blur the background a little more.

struss · Nov 4, 2006

Agreed with rwebbart. Try to use a telephoto lense to take the picture from further away but use a smaller aperture (F8-F32, try and error

) to get the whole sunflower in focus. Like the saturated yellow!

meotter · Nov 4, 2006

in the 2nd image, is it me or does the middle of the flowers seem to be illuminated? is that just blown out or is it really glowing?

the 2nd image definitly has a more distracting background, but you also didn't get to capture the whole flower...as they're both cut off either on top or bottom.

BoblyBill · Nov 5, 2006

So... is this a better background for the first image?

http://static.flickr.com/106/290262757_a7cdec677e.jpg?v=0

Granted I just got PS Elements, so I know that PSing skills are lacking but is that more of what you are talking about having a more green background?

And is this more burred image of the second better for that one?

Please over look the PSing skills cause I just got that program last night.

meotter vbmenu_register("postmenu_598598", true); - in the 2nd image, is it me or does the middle of the flowers seem to be illuminated? is that just blown out or is it really glowing?

That's just the flower it's self... they have a really bright center.

teishu · Nov 8, 2006

great photo really vibrant

black moon · Nov 8, 2006

It is a good photo all that needs to be done it the flower should be moved over slightly so it limits the background that way its not so distracting also dont worry about the damage on the flower because its part of nature thats what makes photography so great, the ups and downs